#NotYourWedge: Asian American Student Activism & Transformational Resistance

>> GOOD MORNING! GOOD MORNING, HIGHLINE! HOW ARE YOU DOING TODAY? WOO! OKAY WELL, THANK YOU ALL FOR MAKING IT AT 10 A

M ON A THURSDAY TO THIS AMAZING EVENT SO I AM THE PROGRAMMING AND PROMOTIONS LEADERSHIP SUPERVISOR AT THE LEADERSHIP FOR SERVICE AND MULTICULTURAL AFFAIRS IT IS MY PLEASURE TO INTRODUCE VANESSA NA, OUR INCREDIBLE UNITY WEEK SPEAKER THIS MORNING SO A PROUD FATHER OF HARD-WORKING CAMBODIAN REFUGEES, VANESSA IS AN AMAZING, FIERCE CAMBODIAN AMERICAN CHANGE-MAKER WITH A HEART OF GOLD, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR AND PROJECT ASSOCIATE FOR THE INSTITUTE FOR TRANSFORMATION AND EQUITY

SHE HAS ALWAYS FELT A DEEP COMMITMENT TO ADDRESSING ISSUES OF ACCESS, EQUITY AND FIGHTS FOR INCLUSION THROUGH ACTIONABLE STORYTELLING AND NARRATIVE HER WORK CENTERS STUDENTS OF COLOR, ASIAN AMERICAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS, SOUTHEAST ASIANS, INTERGENERATIONAL RESILIENCE IN TRANSFORMING SHE IS GETTING HER HIGHER EDUCATION AT WITH INDIANA UNIVERSITY SHE IS A COMMUNITY ORGANIZER DEEPLY INVESTED AND INVOLVED IN ORGANIZATIONS, SERVING AS THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS IN PROJECT AVA, APIKC, APAN AND MANY MORE SHE SEEKS TO — SHE WORKS IN THE DIVISION OF — SHE USED TO WORK — THERE'S — SHE HAS A LOT OF AMAZING WORK

YES SHE USED TO WORK IN DIVISION OF EQUITY AND INCLUSION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF OREGON AS THE PUBLIC RELATIONS COORDINATOR AND HAS PRESENTED OVER 30 — AT OVER 30 CONFERENCES ON ISSUES RELATING TO SOCIAL JUSTICE AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS HER SIDE HUSTLE IS A GRAPHIC DESIGNER MM-HMM, YES SO TODAY SHE WILL BE PRESENTING ON NOT YOUR WEDGE ASIAN AMERICAN STUDENT ACTIVISM AND TRANSFORMATIONAL RESISTANCE

PLEASE SHOW VANESSA SOME LOVE (APPLAUSE) >> THANK YOU THANK YOU, JADE AND TO EVERYONE ELSE IT'S A REAL HONOR TO BE WITH YOU TODAY I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF FINALS WEEK SO THIS IS A NICE BREAK FROM SITTING IN FRONT OF MY COMPUTER WRITING ALL THOSE PAPERS SO IT'S NOT TO BE ABLE TO BE AROUND PEOPLE INSTEAD OF BOOKS ALTHOUGH BOOKS ARE GREAT

SOMETIMES IT'S A BIT MUCH SO JADE ALREADY DID A QUICK INTRODUCTION BUT I FIGURED INTRODUCING MYSELF AGAIN IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO SETTING THE STAGE FOR THIS PARTICULAR PRESENTATION I WANT TO BE ABLE TO SHARE MY IDENTITIES WITH YOU BECAUSE I'M HOPING THAT IN DOING SO WE CAN ALL START TO SHARE STORIES AS WELL SO AS YOU CAN SEE THIS IS MY DOG SHE'S 6 MONTHS OLD

SO ONE OF MY IDENTITIES IS A DOG MOM NEVER THOUGHT THAT THAT WOULD BE AN IDENTITY FOR ME BUT IT'S TAUGHT ME A LOT ABOUT RESPONSIBILITY AND, LIKE, ALWAYS HAVING TO GET UP AT 5 AM SO SHE'S FED AND CAN GO OUTSIDE, ALL THOSE TYPE OF THINGS I REALLY CARE ABOUT SOCIAL JUSTICE, I'M A FEMINIST, DOCTORAL STUDENT, A WOMAN OF COLOR, ASIAN AMERICAN, STORYTELLER, DAUGHTER OF REFUGEES, AND BECAUSE THE NEW HARRY POTTER GAME JUST CAME OUT YESTERDAY, WOO, DOWNLOADED IT, SPENT TWO HOURS ON IT, I'M ALSO A RAVEN CLAW

I'M GOING TO DO THIS REALLY QUICKLY I WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE LAND WE'RE MEETING ON TODAY HAS LONG SERVED AS A SITE OF MEETING AND EXCHANGE AMONGST INDIGENOUS PEOPLES I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO DO THIS IN ORDER TO PAY RECOGNITION TO OUR HISTORY AND OUR CURRENT ENGAGEMENT IN SETTLER COLONIALISM SO I WANT TO SAY THERE ARE 29 FEDERALLY RECOGNIZED NATIVE AMERICAN NATIONS THROUGHOUT WASHINGTON STATE AND PROBABLY VERY MANY MORE SO AGAIN, AGAIN, RECOGNIZING THAT THIS LAND, IT'S AN HONOR FOR US TO BE HERE AND TO REMEMBER THE HISTORY OF WHY WE'RE HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE

SO I DID WANT TO GIVE EVERYBODY AN OPPORTUNITY TO GET TO KNOW OTHER FOLKS IN THE ROOM SO I WANTED TO SPEND ABOUT FIVE OR SIX MINUTES TO GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO TALK TO THE PERSON NEXT TO YOU AND JUST TELL THEM THE STORY OF YOUR NAME HOW DID — WHERE DID YOUR NAME COME FROM, WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN, IS THERE HISTORY TO YOUR NAME, DID SOMEONE FIND IT IN A BABY BOOK, WHAT IS THE HISTORY OF YOUR NAME SO GIVE YOU ABOUT FIVE MINUTES TO TURN TO THE PERSON NEXT TO YOU AND SHARE THAT STORY OR YOU CAN DO IT AS A GROUP

ALL RIGHT SO I'M GOING TO ASK YOU TO TRANSITION, IF YOUR PARTNER HASN'T SHARED THE STORY OF THEIR NAME YET, PLEASE SWITCH I'LL GIVE YOU ALL ABOUT A MINUTE TO WRAP UP OKAY SO IT SOUNDS LIKE A LOT OF GREAT CONVERSATIONS ARE HAPPENING, AND I'M — APOLOGIZE FOR INTERRUPTING BUT I HOPE THAT YOU CAN CONTINUE TO SHARE THESE STORIES AFTER THIS SESSION AS WELL AND THAT YOU MET SOME GREAT PEOPLE

I WAS WONDERING IF THERE WERE MAYBE ONE OR TWO PAIRS THAT WOULDN'T MIND SHARING WITH THE CONSENT OF YOUR PARTNER, OF COURSE, THE STORY OF YOUR NAMES WOULD YOU ALL LIKE TO GO? YEAH, ONE PERSON SEEMS VERY ENTHUSIASTIC COULD YOU INTRODUCE YOURSELVES AND THEN YOUR NAMES AND THEN THE STORIES? >> HI HI MY NAME'S PATRICK

I'M AN ACADEMIC ADVISER HERE MY NAME IS PATRICK, AND MY DAD'S NAME IS NOT PATRICK IT'S ACTUALLY PATERNO SO WHEN THEY WERE GOING TO NAME ME, MY DAD GOES, OH, WE'RE GONNA NAME HIM PATERNO, PATERNO, JR AND THIS IS REAL, MY MOM SAID NO YOUR NAME IS UGLY

SO THEY NAMED ME PATRICK INSTEAD BUT MY UNCLES, REAL UNCLES, NOT LIKE FAMILY FRIENDS, SOME OF THEM CALL ME JUNIOR I THINK THAT'S PRETTY COOL SO I LET THEM CALL ME JUNIOR THAT IS MINE DORIS? >> THANK YOU, PAT

I'M NAMED AFTER MY MOM DORIS IS NOT HER NAME, SHE HATED HER REAL NAME SO I ENDED UP GETTING THAT NAME BUT MY MIDDLE NAME IS ACTUALLY JELANI WHICH WAS MY DAD'S FAVORITE TEACHER BUT SHE HATED HER SO THEY WON WITH BOTH I GOT THE FIRST NAME BECAUSE OF HER AND MY MIDDLE NAME TO EVEN IT OUT WITH MY DAD THAT'S IT >> THANK YOU FOR SHARING

ARE THERE OTHER FOLKS WHO WOULD LIKE TO SHARE? YEAH, OF COURSE, PLEASE SHARE >> HI MY NAME IS MARLENA SO MY — SO MY NAME CAME ABOUT, MY MOM AND HER SISTERS LOVED THE AMERICAN SOAP OPERA DAYS OF OUR LIVES, AND THEIR FAVORITE CHARACTER IS MARLENA MY DAD UNFORTUNATELY WASN'T THERE FOR MY BIRTH, HE WAS BUSY, AND SO I — I WAS AT THE MERCY OF MY MOTHER AND HER SISTERS, AND THAT'S HOW MY NAME CAME TO BE

>> AWESOME >> MARLENA >> THANK YOU FOR SHARING SO I WANTED TO DO THIS ACTIVITY BECAUSE I BELIEVE THAT STORIES ARE INTEGRATIVE TO EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF OUR LIVES, EVEN IF IT'S SOMETHING LIKE OUR NAMES WHICH WE USE EVERY SINGLE DAY WHEN WE SHARE OUR NAMES WE DON'T NECESSARILY TALK ABOUT THE MEANING BEHIND THEM EITHER

BUT OUR STORIES — OR OUR NAMES DO CARRY STORIES, AND THEY HAVE MEANING, AND THEY ARE IMPORTANT TO WHO WE ARE I DID WANT TO SHARE HOW I RECEIVED MY NAME SO MY NAME IS VANESSA NA MY ORIGINAL NAME IS VANESSA TECK WHEN I WAS BORN MY MOM HAD JUST COME TO THE U

S AS A REFUGEE, AND SHE STARTED HIGH SCHOOL, AND SHE WAS BULLIED A LOT FOR HER NAME SO WHEN I WAS BORN SHE WANTED TO GIVE ME A NAME THAT WAS EASY TO PRONOUNCE THAT PEOPLE WON'T MAKE FUN OF SO SHE THOUGHT OF THE MOST AMERICAN NAME SHE COULD THINK OF, AND IT WAS VANESSA AS I GOT OLDER I DIDN'T REALIZE THE REASON WHY SHE DID THAT ONCE I GOT TO COLLEGE I WAS FRUSTRATED AND ANGRY THAT I DIDN'T HAVE A CAMBODIAN NAME SO WHEN I GOT MARRIED MY GRANDMA GIFTED ME A CAMBODIAN MIDDLE NAME AND I CHANGED TO MY MOTHER'S NAME INSTEAD OF MY PARTNER'S NAME

I WANTED TO RECLAIM MY IDENTITY BACK BECAUSE IT WAS TAKEN FORCEFULLY FROM ME NOT BY MY MOM BUT FORCES OF OPPRESSION IN THE UNITED STATES WHEN I CAME SO WHEN I WAS INVITED TO THIS TALK, THANK YOU, JADE, GOT A MESSAGE OVER FACEBOOK, THAT'S GREAT, I CALLED MY MOM, AND I WAS TRYING TO TELL HER THAT MY LIBERAL ARTS DEGREE WAS BEING PUT TO GOOD USE, LIKE I COULD WRITE, LIKE, SPEECHES, I COULD PUT TOGETHER PRESENTATIONS, I'M SORRY I WASN'T TAKING A TON OF MONEY BECAUSE NOW I'M IN EDUCATION, BUT I COULD TALK AND SHE WAS TELLING ME THAT EVERYTHING I ACTUALLY KNOW IS FROM HER, AND THAT SHE SHOULD HAVE BEEN INVITED TO SPEAK HERE INSTEAD (LAUGHTER) SO NEXT YEAR IF YOU ALL NEED A SPEAKER, SHE IS THE ORIGINAL — SHE'S THE OG, I WOULD RECOMMEND BRING HER, AND SHE COULD TELL YOU HER STORIES, TOO SO THIS SLIDE — DO PEOPLE RECOGNIZE THE PHOTOS ON THIS SLIDE AT ALL? SOME OF THEM? SO I WANTED TO PROVIDE A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE ASIAN AMERICAN MOVEMENT, AND THE MOVEMENT WE KNOW TODAY EMERGED FROM A DEEP LEGACY OF MULTIRACIAL AND COALITION BUILDING

IN SEATTLE, FOR EXAMPLE, DURING THE 1930s THERE WERE SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGNS AGAINST BILLS THAT WOULD HAVE MADE INTERRACIAL MARRIAGE ILLEGAL IN WASHINGTON STATE JAPANESE, FILIPINO ACTIVISTS CAME TOGETHER TO KEEP THE BILLS FROM HAPPENING ASIAN AMERICAN MOVEMENT HAS EXISTED FOR A LONG TIME, BUT IT WASN'T UNTIL THE 1960s THAT A LOT OF SIGNIFICANT SOCIAL MOVEMENTS REALLY BROUGHT THE ASIAN AMERICAN ACTIVIST MOVEMENT TO THE FRONT AND CENTER SO THE BLACK POWER MOVEMENT AND ANTI-VIETNAM WAR MOVEMENTS ALSO KNOWN AS THE AMERICAN WAR WAS A CONFLICT THAT OCCURRED IN VIETNAM, LAOS AND CAMBODIA ASIAN AMERICANS WANTED SELF DETERMINATION FOR THOSE IN THE UNITED STATES AND IN ASIAN, AND WORKED TOGETHER FOR RALLIES, DEMONSTRATIONS, LEAFLETS, FLIERS, NEWSPAPERS THAT CRITICIZED THIS WAR FOR BEING PARTICULARLY ANTI-ASIAN AMONGST MANY OTHER THINGS

DEMONSTRATING AGAINST IT CREATED ALLIANCES ENHANCING THE SENSE OF ASIAN AMERICAN IDENTITY AS A SHARED ETHNIC IDENTITY SO BEFORE WE MOVE INTO CHIN, AS ALL OF THIS WAS HAPPENING, AT BERKELEY THERE WAS A GRADUATE STUDENT WHO WOULD GO ON TO BE A REALLY INFLUENTIAL HISTORIAN HE COINED THE TERM ASIAN AMERICAN IT WAS AT THIS POINT THAT ASIAN AMERICAN BECAME A POLITICAL IDENTITY INSTEAD OF A RACIAL CATEGORY FOR ASIAN AMERICANS SO AS WE SHARE THE HISTORY OF OUR NAMES EARLIER, ASIAN AMERICAN SOON BECAME THIS IDENTITY THAT CARRIED A LOT OF HISTORY AND A LOT OF STORIES WITH IT AS WELL

ONE OF THE REALLY IMPORTANT EVENTS THAT HAPPENED WAS VINCENT CHIN ARE YOU FAMILIAR? RAISE YOUR HAND I DIDN'T LEARN ABOUT HIM UNTIL COLLEGE IN 1982 JUST A WEEK BEFORE THE WEDDING, HIS WEDDING, HE WAS BLUDGEONED TO DEATH BY TWO WHITE AUTO WORKERS THIS HAS BECOME ONE OF THE MOST INFAMOUS HATE CRIMES IN ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY

THE TWO FOLKS WHO WERE PERPETRATORS OF THIS WERE ONLY SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS OF PROBATION ONE IS HAPPILY LIVING IN NEVADA WITH NO FINES, NO ONE TALKING ABOUT THEM THE FAMILY OF MR CHIN IS STILL LOOKING FOR JUSTICE AS WELL THEY WERE FINED $3,000, THAT WAS IT

SO $3,000 FOR A LIFE IS APPARENTLY WHAT ASIAN AMERICAN LIVES ARE WORTH HE WAS ONLY ONE OF THE VERY IMPORTANT EVENTS THAT HAPPENED IN ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY, AND YOU'LL SEE ALONG THE WALLS THERE ARE SHEETS OF PAPERS WITH DATES AND I WANTED TO GIVE YOU ALL AN OPPORTUNITY TO BECOME FAMILIAR WITH SOME OF THE BIG MOMENTS IN OUR ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY AS WELL GOING TO SPEND THE MAYBE NEXT TEN MINUTES FOR YOU ALL TO GET UP, MOVE AROUND A LITTLE BIT SINCE IT'S EARLY AND HEAD AROUND THE LEFT SIDE AND THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE ROOM THERE ARE A FEW OUTSIDE THE DOOR THERE TOO FOR YOU TO GO AHEAD AND READ INDEPENDENTLY SOME OF THESE EVENTS

GIVE YOU ALL TEN MINUTES, AND I'LL BRING YOU ALL BACK OKAY, I'LL GIVE YOU ALL JUST A FEW MORE MINUTES THE EVENTS ON EACH SIDE ARE DIFFERENT AS WELL, SO IF YOU HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO TRANSITION FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER, FEEL FREE TO DO THAT OKAY, SO I'LL GIVE EVERYONE ABOUT ANOTHER MINUTE TO FINISH UP WHAT THEY'RE READING AND THEN HEADING BACK TO THEIR SEATS SO THIS POWERPOINT IS A CROWD SOURCE POWERPOINT PUT TOGETHER BY A LOT OF FOLKS ON THE INTERNET SO IF YOU WANT A COPY OF THIS FEEL FREE TO CONTACT JADE, MAYBE, AND I'M HAPPY TO SHARE THAT PRESENTATION WITH YOU AS WELL SINCE IT WAS A COMMUNITY EFFORT

I WANTED TO SEE IF THERE WERE ANY OBSERVATIONS THAT FOLKS MADE IN THE ROOM WERE THERE EVENTS THAT STUCK OUT, ONES THAT YOU WERE SURPRISED BY >> I REALLY APPRECIATED THERE WERE ONLINE EVENTS IN ADDITION TO THE HISTORICAL ONES THE ONLINE ONES SHOW THERE'S A WAY TO HAVE SOMETHING HAPPEN IN THAT ATMOSPHERE I THINK IT'S RELEVANT TO FOLKS THAT ARE IN COLLEGE AS WELL

THANK YOU FOR INCLUDING THOSE >> THANK YOU FOR THAT THAT'S A GOOD INTRO TO WHAT THE PRESENTATION WILL THEN GO INTO VERY SOON OTHER OBSERVATIONS? YOU DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE TO WALK UP — OR SHOULD THEY WALK UP TO THE MICROPHONE? YES, YOU SHOULD >> HELLO

I THOUGHT IT WAS INTERESTING TO SEE, LIKE, AFTER SEEING THE SLIDES WITH — I CAN'T REMEMBER, I THINK IT SAID LIKE ASIAN POWER SUPPORTS BLACK POWER, SOMETHING, AND THEN SEEING THE EVENT WHERE THE ASIAN AMERICAN COP KILLED AN UNARMED BLACK MAN, AND HOW THAT KIND OF CAUSED SO MUCH COMMOTION NOT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT, YOU KNOW, SUPPORTING BLACK POWER BUT MORE PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT THE INJUSTICE RATHER THAN THE JUSTICE THAT WAS FOUGHT IN UNITY SO, YEAH >> THAT'S A GOOD POINT >> SO I WANTED TO DO THIS ACTIVITY BECAUSE I WANTED TO SHOW HOW, ONE, WE'RE USUALLY ONLY GIVEN ONE STORY OF OUR HISTORY, AND TWO, A LOT OF EVENTS HAPPEN SIMULTANEOUSLY AT THE SAME TIME SO AS YOU WERE LOOKING AROUND, IT'S LIKELY THAT YOU DIDN'T SEE VERY MUCH THAT HAD TO DO WITH MY FAMILY'S HISTORY

MY FAMILY'S HISTORY AND MY DIASPORIC HISTORY STARTED IN 1982 HERE ARE PICTURES FROM OUR WEDDING, MY PARTNER AND I, WE DID A CAMBODIAN CEREMONY YOU CAN SEE MY FAMILY THERE I JUST THINK THAT IT'S INTERESTING BUT PROBABLY NOT COINCIDENTAL THAT THERE WERE SO MUCH CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS HAPPENING IN THE UNITED STATES AT THE SAME TIME THAT MY FAMILY HAD A CATALYST THAT WOULD CHANGE THEIR LIVES FOREVER SO I WANTED TO SHARE THAT MY STORY BEGINS AND ENDS WITH MY COMMUNITY

WITHOUT THEM, I WOULDN'T KNOW HISTORY, AND I WOULDN'T KNOW THE MOVEMENT THAT I'M A PART OF AND HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY TO ALSO CONTINUE ALL OF THE EVENTS THAT ARE PLACED AROUND THE ROOM TODAY ARE INTIMATELY CONNECTED NOT JUST TO EACH OTHER BUT ALSO TO US AND THIS PRESENT MOMENT A LOT OF US ARE HERE BECAUSE OF THESE MOMENTS IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND THE FUTURE THAT'S DIVERSE WE HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE PAST THAT HAS BEEN SHARED WITH US AND THE PAST THAT WE HAVE BEEN TOLD IS TRUE MORE OFTEN THAN NOT WE'RE ONLY GIVEN, AGAIN, ONE VERSION OF THIS PAST

FOR MYSELF AND MY COMMUNITY, TALKING STORY IS ONE OF THE WAYS WE PRESERVE THESE MOVEMENTS STORYTELLING HAS ALLOWED ME TO PRESERVE MY OWN ROOTS AND SHARE OUR EXPERIENCES IN WAYS THAT ARE REAL AND AUTHENTIC THEY GIVE US THE ABILITY TO CHALLENGE WHAT WE LEARNED IN OUR HISTORY BOOKS AND GIVES US THE POWER TO ADVOCATE FOR VISIBILITY AND REPRESENTATION AND GIVE US THE RIGHT TO WRITE OUR OWN HISTORIES, THEY CAN MOVE SYSTEMS AND TRANSFORM INSTITUTIONS STORYTELLINGS ARE ALSO RESISTANCE AND STORIES CAN ALSO START REVOLUTIONS SO I WANT YOU TO IMAGINE THIS

ON APRIL 17, 1975, PHNOM PENH FELL TO THE KHMER ROUGE MY GRANDPARENTS THINK BACK AND TALK ABOUT HOW THE KHMER ROUGE SCOURED THE CITY AND THE UNITED STATES WAS GOING TO BE DROPPING THEIR BOMBS ON THE CITY GREETING THE CITIZENS WITH SMILES THEY EXPRESSED THAT SAFETY WAS THEIR PRIORITY AND ALL THOSE LIVING IN THE CITY SHOULD EVACUATE TO THE COUNTRYSIDE THEY PROMISED THAT IT WOULD BE OVER SOON AND THEY COULD SOON TO THE CITY BUT IT WAS FOUR YEARS OF TERROR BEFORE ANY LUCKY SURVIVORS RETURNED TO THE REMAINS OF THEIR HOMES MY FAMILY HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO ABANDON ALL OF THEIR BELONGINGS AND AT THAT PRECISE MOMENT THEIR ENTIRE LIVES

HISTORY IS OFTEN WRITTEN BY ITS VICTORS GROWING UP MUCH OF MY NARRATIVE OF THE KHMER ROUGE WERE WRITTEN BY AMERICAN HISTORIANS AND IN MANY WAYS AMERICA WAS PAINTED AS A SAFE HAVEN FOR REFUGEES ALTHOUGH I'M NOT DENYING THAT, AS I SHARED EARLIER THE STORY OF MY NAME IT FELT AS THOUGH MY FAMILY HAD TRADED ONE FORM OF CULTURAL GENOCIDE FOR ANOTHER IT WAS WASHINGTON'S INTENTION IN THE EARLY 1970s TO HELP DEFEAT THE KHMER ROUGE MOVEMENT BUT THE AMERICAN INTERVENTION MAYBE WIDENED WAR DESPITE THE FACT THAT MILITARY STRIKES AGAINST LOCATIONS IN A NEUTRAL COUNTRY WOULD BE A VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL LAWS AND TREATIES IT WAS SOON DECIDED THAT THE AREAS NEEDED TO BE BOMBED TO CLEAN OUT THE COMMUNIST SANCTUARIES

CODE NAMED OPERATION MENU IN 1969 THE US STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND BOMBED CAMBODIA UNDER THE NIXON ADMINISTRATION TO DESTROY SUPPLY LINES AND CAMPS OF THE VIETNAMESE IN 1969 THE SECRET MISSIONS MORE THAN DOUBLED AND OVER A THOUSAND MISSIONS WERE INITIATED IN THE SAME 14-MONTH PERIOD AS YOU SAW IN THIS MAP 3,600 B-52 RAIDS WERE CONDUCTED AGAINST TARGETS

IN THE RED WAS AN AREA OF BOMBING THE BOMBINGS WERE KEPT SECRET NOT ONLY FROM THE PUBLIC BUT ALSO WITHIN THE AIR FORCE COMMAND, AND THE FIRST BOMBING RAIDS WERE CALLED BREAKFAST LATER RAIDS WERE REFERRED TO AS LUNCH EVENTUALLY THE RAIDS REACHED BEYOND DINNER INTO SNACKS AND DESSERT SO YOU CAN SEE HOW THIS IS FITTING METAPHOR FOR, LIKE, THE CONSUMPTION OF AN ENTIRE COUNTRY, ESSENTIALLY BEFORE THE SIGNING OF THE IMMIGRATION ACT OF 1965 EACH COUNTRY IN THE WORLD HAD A CERTAIN NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT COULD SEND TO THE U

S TO EMIGRATE YOU MAY HAVE SEEN IT ON THE SLIDES AROUND THE WALLS BASED ON 2% OF THE TOTAL NUMBER OF PEOPLE OF THAT NATIONALITY WAS ALREADY IN THE UNITED STATES THEY WOULD TAKE THE FOLKS IN THE UNITED STATES, TAKE 2% OF THAT, THAT NUMBER WAS THEN THE AMOUNT OF FOLKS WHO COULD THEN IMMIGRATE TO THE UNITED STATES

AND OF COURSE AS WE KNOW THE HISTORY USUALLY FAVORS CERTAIN TYPES OF COMMUNITIES THIS ACT HEAVILY FAVORED NORTHERN EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES WHICH MADE UP 86% OF THE IMMIGRANTS AT THIS TIME HOWEVER THE IMMIGRATION AND NATIONALITY ACT OF 1965 LIFTED THESE QUOTAS, AND THEN PAVED THE WAY FOR THE UNITED STATES REFUGEE ACT OF 1980 WHICH BROUGHT ME TO THIS SPACE IT WAS CREATED TO PROVIDE THE ADMISSION US

AND RAISED IT TO 50,000 REFUGEES THIS WAS AROUND THE TIME MY FAMILY WAS ABLE TO COME HERE HOWEVER I WASN'T TAUGHT ANY OF THIS AS I WAS GROWING UP, MY FAMILY DIDN'T WANT TO TALK ABOUT THIS AND I NEVER GOT TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH THEM UNTIL I TALKED ABOUT HOW I WANTED TO GO BACK TO CAMBODIA IN MY UNDERGRAD I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO STUDY ABROAD

STUDY ABROAD IS A WEIRD TERM BECAUSE I FELT LIKE I WAS GOING HOME IN A LOT OF WAYS, AND MY MOM TOLD ME NO THAT I COULDN'T GO TO CAMBODIA THAT'S WHEN WE HAD OUR FIRST CONVERSATION ABOUT WHY SHE WAS SCARED SHE HAD TO SURVIVE SO MUCH TO BE IN THE UNITED STATES IT DIDN'T MAKE SENSE TO HER WHY I WOULD WANT TO GO BACK TO SOMETHING LIKE THAT I SHARE A LOT ABOUT MY MOM BECAUSE I — I THINK THERE'S SO MUCH TO BE SAID TO HAVE A PARENT WHO FELL ASLEEP TO THE SOUND OF BULLETS AND EXPLOSIONS AND SHE'S SO LOVING AND CARING AND MAKES EVERYTHING FROM NOTHING

THIS IS A POEM, BROKE THE OCEAN IN HALF TO BE HERE ONLY TO MEET NOTHING THAT WANTS YOU, AND THIS REALLY RESONATES WITH ME BECAUSE MY MOM CAME HERE AND MY FAMILY CAME HERE BECAUSE THEY HAD NO CHOICE, AND THEY GAVE EVERYTHING UP, AND THEY DID SO MUCH TO FORGET THAT HISTORY BECAUSE THEY FACED SO MUCH ALIENATION HERE IN THE UNITED STATES THAT PEOPLE DIDN'T WANT THEM SO EVEN THOUGH SHE LITERALLY DID BREAK THE OCEAN IN HALF TO BE HERE THERE WAS NO ONE THAT WOULD ACCEPT HER I SHARE THIS QUOTE BECAUSE I THINK FOR THOSE OF US WHO MIGHT NOT BE ABLE-BODIED OR HEARTH ROW SEXUAL OR WHITE — HETEROSEXUAL OR WHITE MUCH OF THE NARRATIVES WE READ ABOUT OUR HISTORIES, PARTICULARLY CAMBODIAN HISTORY ARE REALLY SMALL EXCERPTS IN HISTORY BOOKS THEY WOULD TALK ABOUT THE VIETNAM WAR, AND I WOULD FEEL LUCKY IF THERE WAS EVEN A SENTENCE THAT HAD CAMBODIA ON IT

LATER I REALIZED PEOPLE WERE WRITING CHAPTERS AND ENTIRE BOOKS ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED I AM ACTUALLY CURIOUS, TOO, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO READ COMMUNITY-BASED WORK, INTERESTED IN HISTORY, HOW MANY TIMES YOU'VE ACTUALLY READ ABOUT YOUR COMMUNITIES IN YOUR HISTORY BOOKS HAVE YOU READ ABOUT YOUR COMMUNITIES? CAN YOU RAISE YOUR HANDS? WERE THEY MORE THAN A PAGE? KEEP YOUR HANDS UP YOU DON'T KNOW? YEAH SO THAT WAS MY EXPERIENCE, TOO

AND I THINK THAT THIS CAN BE A REALLY SUBTLE AND DANGEROUS WAY OF MAKING OUR COMMUNITIES REALLY INVISIBLE IT WAS BECAUSE OF THIS THAT I BEGAN WRITING MY UNDERSTANDING AND TRUTHS TO THE WORLD IF WE DON'T, WHO WILL? AS I WENT THROUGH SCHOOL I DIDN'T SEEK OUT OTHER CAMBODIAN STUDENTS I INTERNALIZED A LOT OF ISMS AND ONLY WANTED TO BELONG AS A RESULT GAVE UP LOTS OF MYSELF IN ORDER TO BELONG IN THOSE SPACES

AND IT'S ONLY PROBABLY IN THE PAST FEW YEARS THAT I'VE BEGUN TO FINALLY ACCEPT AND RESPECT MY FAMILY'S JOURNEY, AND I WANTED TO START LEARNING CAMBODIAN AND SPEAKING MY FIRST LANGUAGE AS I WENT TO SCHOOL I WAS TAUGHT TO ONLY SPEAK IN ENGLISH WHEN I FINALLY GOT THE TO GO TO CAMBODIA I TOOK CLASSES SO I CAN KIND OF READ AND WRITE AND SPEAK IT CONVERSATIONALLY I ALSO GOT A TATTOO AND WHICH MY MOM WAS NOT HAPPY WITH WHEN I WAS IN CAMBODIA MY GRANDPA HAD A FAMILY FOR ME BEFORE I WENT TO CAMBODIA, AND I WANTED IT TATTOOED ON MY NECK BECAUSE MY FAMILY IS ALWAYS WITH ME

EVEN THOUGH I CAN'T SEE THEM I KNOW THEY ALWAYS HAVE MY BACK MY MOM WAS LIKE, WHATEVER THAT DOESN'T MATTER TO ME, YOU STILL HAVE SOMETHING ON YOUR NECK BUT AS LONG AS I THINK IT'S SPECIAL FUNNY STORY IS THAT ABOUT TWO WEEKS LATER I FOUND OUT MY SIBLINGS HAD ALSO GOT TATTOOS ON THEIR NECKS WE DIDN'T TELL EACH OTHER AND THEN WE, LIKE, RANDOMLY FOUND OUT THAT WE ALL GOT TATTOOS BEHIND MY MOM'S BACK, AND IT WAS ALL IN THE SAME LOCATION, DIFFERENT TATTOOS BUT ALL ON THE BACK OF OUR NECKS SOMETHING HAPPENED THERE, WE WERE COMMUNICATING WITH EACH OTHER SOMEHOW

LET'S SEE I WANTED TO SHARE THIS PARTICULAR PICTURE AND THIS STORY ABOUT HOW I GOT TO GO AND LEARN CAMBODIAN BECAUSE I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF INTIMACY IN SPEAKING THE LANGUAGE OF YOUR ANCESTORS FOR PEOPLE IN THE ROOM WHO MIGHT SPEAK ANOTHER LANGUAGE OR MULTIPLE LANGUAGE YOU PROBABLY KNOW THIS IT'S AN INTIMACY I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHEN I WAS YOUNGER GROWING UP MY MOM WOULD CALL ME CHILD AND MY GRANDPARENTS WOULD CALL ME GRANDCHILD, AND THEM REFERRING TO ME AS THIS AFFIRMED THEIR LOVE TO ME EVEN WHEN I WAS LESS RECEPTIVE

MY LANGUAGE WILL ALWAYS SERVE AS A LANGUAGE OF LOVE TO ME IT WAS THE LANGUAGE FIRST EXPRESSING LOVE TO ME IT INVOKES A VISCERAL SENSE OF MY FAMILY'S LOVE AND INVOKES MEMORIES OF HOW MY FAMILY BEFORE I WAS BORN HAD A VISION AND HOPE FOR A MORE LOVING FUTURE IT'S BECAUSE OF THEM THAT I NOW PRACTICE RADICAL LOVE WHICH LEADS ME INTO MY SOCIAL JUSTICE JOURNEY

SO FOR THOSE WHO MIGHT BE FAMILIAR WITH SOME OF MY WORK, I USE SOCIAL MEDIA, FACEBOOK, TWITTER, SNAPCHAT, INSTAGRAM, FEEL FREE TO JOIN ME I USE IT TO SPEAK OUT AND RESIST, I'M SURE YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH #ACTIVISM HAVE ANY OF YOU FOLLOWED ANY OF THESE BEFORE? AWESOME CONVERSATIONS, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IF YOU HAVE SOME TIME TO LOOK AT THE THREADS AS WELL, THEY'RE STILL UP HAD AN ACTIVITY BUT I THINK FOR THE SAKE OF TIME WE MIGHT HAVE TO SKIP IT I WAS ACTUALLY CURIOUS IF THERE WERE HASHTAG MOVEMENTS YOU'VE SEEN OR HEARD OF OR FOLLOWED THAT AREN'T UP HERE THAT OTHER FOLKS SHOULD CHECK OUT

PEOPLE WANT TO SHARE? YEAH #AMINEXT? OTHER HASHTAG MOVEMENTS PEOPLE ARE FOLLOWING? THERE'S A LOT OSCAR SO WHITE WAS ONE THAT WAS HAPPENING OTHERS? YES? #REPRESENTATIONMATTERS, THAT'S A GOOD ONE, TOO SO FOR THOSE WHO ARE ON TWITTER AND THOSE NOT ON TWITTER, I THINK WE CAN AGREE THAT THE REVOLUTION ITSELF IS NOT GOING TO BE TWEETED

JUSTICE CAN'T BE ACCOMPLISHED SOLELY BY TOOLS DEVELOPED THAT ARE RELIANT ON AND PROFITABLE TO CORPORATE AMERICA SO THINGS LIKE TWITTER WHICH MAKES A TON OF MONEY OFF OF CONTENT THAT WE CREATE HOWEVER WE'RE ALSO LIVING LIVES ACROSS THE DIVIDE OF THE OFFLINE WORLDS TWITTER EXCELS AT CREATING INTERPERSONAL CONNECTIONS ACROSS GEOGRAPHIC DISTANCE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE MARGINALIZED BY RACE, LANGUAGE, GENDER AND SEXUALITY, SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE A GATHERING PLACE FOR CONVERSATIONS DEMOCRATIZED SO EVERYBODY CAN TWEET, BE ENGAGED IN THE CONVERSATION

I THINK THAT'S WHY HASHTAGS ARE POWERFUL WHICH IS WHY I ADDED SOME OF THE ONLINE MOVEMENTS INTO THE TIMELINE THAT YOU SEE AROUND THE ROOM I THINK THAT ASIAN AMERICANS IN PARTICULAR HAVE THE HIGHEST RATE OF CONNECTIVITY THAN ANY OTHER RACE OR ETHNIC GROUP #ACTIVISM AND THESE HAVE BEEN SALIENT FOR THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY I WANTED TO POINT OUT A FEW TO YOU ALL IF YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THEM SO NOT YOUR WEDGE IS THE NAME SAKE OF THIS PARTICULAR TALK

IT EMERGED REALLY RECENTLY SO IN 2017 AND WAS CREATED BECAUSE OF A RENEWED ATTENTION TO THE ISSUE OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION, ESSENTIALLY A GROUP OF VERY WEALTHY ELITE WELL-EDUCATED USUALLY FOREIGN-BORN CHINESE FOLKS WERE SAYING THAT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION WAS DAMAGING TO THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY BECAUSE THEIR STUDENTS WEREN'T GETTING ADMITTED TO IVY LEAGUES HOWEVER THERE WAS A CONTINGENT OF 69% OTHER ASIAN AMERICANS WHO SUPPORT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION AND STARTED THE #NOTYOURWEDGE CONVERSATION THE MEDIA DECIDED TO PICK UP THE OTHER SIDE OF THAT CONVERSATION INSTEAD OF THIS AND TALKED ABOUT HOW THERE WAS DIVISIVENESS IN THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY AND DON'T SUPPORT AFFIRMATIVE ACTION BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE CONVERSATION MOST ASIAN AMERICANS DO ANOTHER ONE IS CLEAN THE DREAM WHICH DEMANDS AMNESTY WITH NO BORDER DEMILITARIZATION

BETWEEN 15 AND 36 YEARS OLD MAKE UP 10% OF THE DACA-ELIGIBLE POPULATION THE CALLS FOR A CLEAN DREAM ACT HAVE STRESSED THE RELIEF FOR UNDOCUMENTED YOUTH THIS SHOULD NOT BE TIED TO BORDER MILITARIZATION AND OTHER MEASURES ASIAN AMERICANS HAVE BEEN REALLY INTEGRAL IN HELPING THIS MOVEMENT MOVE FORWARD AS WELL FINALLY ONE THAT IS DEAR TO MY HEART IS NOT ONE MORE WHICH ELEVATES THE EXPERIENCE OF REFUGEE COMMUNITIES BY RALLYING TOGETHER AGAINST NEW WAVE OF DEPORTATION

SO DURING THE FOUR YEARS OF THE WAR THAT I SHARED EARLIER, THERE WERE ALL THE REFUGEES WHO CAME TO THE UNITED STATES NOW THERE'S A MOVEMENT TO DEPORT ALL OF THEM BACK EARLIER THIS MONTH I THINK AROUND APRIL 6th OR 7th 40 CAMBODIANS IN PARTICULAR WERE DEPORTED BACK TO CAMBODIA EVEN THOUGH THEY CAME TO THE US EXPECTING THAT IT WAS A SAFE HAVEN

THERE'S A MOVEMENT TO DEPORT REFUGEES BACK TO SOUTHEAST ASIA WHICH IS REALLY DISHEARTENING I THINK THAT'S WHY #ACTIVISM IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT'S A WAY TO SEE THESE CONVERSATIONS AND MOVEMENTS ARE HAPPENING I AGREE THAT TWITTER AND SOCIAL MEDIA ARE NOT PERFECT TOOLS BUT IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT TELEVISION AND BLOGS AND SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE NO PLACE WITHIN THE TOOL KIT OF SOCIAL JUSTICE ACTIVISM AS WELL I THINK WHEN WE USE DIGITAL PLATFORMS TO TELL OUR STORIES WE PUSH BACK AGAINST OUR OWN MARGINALIZATION, AND CREATE VIBRANT INTERACTIONS OF PREVIOUSLY UNHEARD VOICES AND INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPATION IN THIS DISCOURSE ALSO IS CAN CAUSE TRANSFORMATION AND SPARK SYSTEMIC CHANGE AS WELL I THINK THAT IN ORDER FOR US TO HAVE A MORE RADICAL ASIAN AMERICA WE NEED OUR SCHOLARS AND ORGANIZERS TO WORK TOGETHER AND MAKE SURE THESE TYPES OF STORIES ARE AT THE FOREFRONT

I THINK ANOTHER THING THAT HAS BEEN REALLY — THAT HAS CAUSED A LOT OF CONFLICT WITH #ACTIVISM IN THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IS IT BECOMES AN ECHO CHAMBER WHERE PEOPLE ARE FIGHTING AND CREATING ANTI-HASHTAGS AND CREATING ANONYMOUS ACCOUNTS TO BE TROLLS I MYSELF HAVE BEEN SOMEONE WHO'S BEEN TARGETED WITH HARASSMENT THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA, THINGS LIKE THAT MY ADDRESS HAS BEEN SHARED, PICTURES HAVE BEEN SHARED, ALL THOSE TYPES OF THINGS, AND I THINK PEOPLE HIDE BEHIND ANONYMITY HOWEVER I ENCOURAGE FOLKS INTERESTED IN #ACTIVISM OR EVEN SKEPTICAL OF IT TO REALIZE THERE IS POWER IN IT AND THE POWER IN IT IS THAT YOU BEGIN TO HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH YOURSELF

AND I THINK THAT SELF TRANSFORMATION IS SPARKED BY THIS, AND IT ALSO HELPS YOU ENGAGE IN A DISCOURSE WITH OTHER FOLKS WHERE WE CAN WORK TOGETHER IN THIS JOURNEY FOR CONSCIOUSNESS AND I THINK THAT ALL OF THAT CAN POTENTIALLY JUST HAPPEN WITH A HASHTAG ALL RIGHT LET ME SEE WHAT OUR TIME IS I THINK WE HAVE TIME FOR THIS ACTIVITY SO IF YOU ALL CAN TAKE A FEW MINUTES TO TURN TO THE PERSON NEXT TO YOU, MAYBE SOMEONE DIFFERENT AS WELL IF YOU'RE SITTING WITH FOLKS WHO YOU'VE BEEN SITTING WITH TO TALK ABOUT HOW YOU PERSONALLY WOULD DEFINE ACTIVISM BECAUSE IT CAN TAKE LOTS OF DIFFERENT FORMS AND SHAPES

BUT I WANT A SENSE OF WHAT FOLKS THINK ABOUT ACTIVISM IN THIS PARTICULAR ROOM SO HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE ACTIVISM, WITH SOMEONE NEXT TO YOU ALL RIGHT SO I'M GOING TO BRING EVERYBODY BACK TOGETHER I'M SITTING NOW BECAUSE I REALIZE THAT MAYBE HEELS WERE A MISTAKE

SO YES NEVER, THAT'S TRUE, THAT'S TRUE THEY LOOK CUTE SO I'M GOING TO REST THEM FOR A LITTLE BIT SO I WANTED TO SEE IF SOME FOLKS WERE INTERESTED IN SHARING WHAT THEY WERE DISCUSSING IN THEIR PAIRS YEAH

>> HELLO WHEN WE — WHEN I WAS IN MY GROUP, WE SHARED THAT ACTIVISM IS DEFENDING PEOPLE WHO EVEN MIGHT NOT SHOW THE SAME APPEARANCE OR REFLECTION OF YOU I REMEMBER READING ABOUT THE MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR — REVEREND DR MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR MARCH

PEOPLE FLEW FROM NOT ONLY DIFFERENT STATES WITHIN THE UNITED STATES BUT DIFFERENT COUNTRIES TO COME MARCH WITH HIM AND WALK WITH HIM SO ACTIVISM ISN'T JUST HELPING, LIKE, YOURSELF, BUT IT'S HELPING PEOPLE WHO DON'T EVEN LOOK LIKE YOU, ACT LIKE YOU, TALK LIKE YOU, WHO HAVE NO SIMILARITIES WITH YOU >> AND WHAT WAS YOUR NAME >> VENIA >> AWESOME

THANK YOU, VENIA WOULD ANYONE ELSE LIKE TO SHARE WHAT THEY WERE DISCUSSING IN THEIR PAIRS OR GROUPS? YES >> SO I WAS TALKING ABOUT, IN MY OPINION, I TAKE, LIKE, THE RADIO WORD OF ACTIVISM WHICH IS BEING ACTIVE AND I THINK TRUE ACTIVISM IS, LIKE, WHAT YOU SEE IN, LIKE, THE PRIMETIME OF LIKE THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENTS WHERE IT WASN'T BEHIND A PHONE RE-TWEETING, TYPING MESSAGES TO PEOPLE BUT BEING IN YOUR FACE, BEING LOUD BEING I DON'T WANT TO SAY BELLIGERENT BUT I'M KIND OF A RADICAL PERSON, SO — TO GET YOUR POINT ACROSS I THINK ACTIVENESS IS THE KEY PART OF ACTIVISM

I DON'T KNOW YEAH I WAS JUST — YEAH I WAS THINK — I THINK THAT THE MOST IMPACT WAS MADE DURING, LIKE, THE CIVIL RIGHTS TIME BECAUSE EVERYONE WASN'T BEHIND A SCREEN AND EVERYONE WASN'T — I MEAN, TIMES HAVE CHANGED, AND PEOPLE ARE, LIKE, AFRAID TO BE OUT BECAUSE OF THE RISK OF GETTING KILLED BUT I THINK TRUE ACTIVISM TAKES SACRIFICE, AND IF IT'S SOMETHING YOU'RE PASSIONATE ABOUT TO THAT EXTENT LIKE MYSELF I WOULD BE WILLING TO LAY MY LIFE ON THE LINE FOR BLACK AND BROWN BODIES SO I THINK THAT'S TRUE ACTIVISM >> THANK YOU

THANK YOU FOR SHARING >> CHELISA >> THANK YOU I PERSONALLY LOVE THIS QUESTION BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE AN ASIAN AMERICAN STUDIES OR ETHNIC STUDIES BACKGROUND SO MY JOURNEY TO ACTIVISM HAS BEEN A LOT ABOUT GETTING TO KNOW PEOPLE, COMMUNITIES AND BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS AND ASKING MYSELF THIS QUESTION AS WELL I HAD NO IDEA AN ASIAN AMERICAN MOVEMENT EVEN EXISTED UNTIL — MAYBE WHEN I GOT TO GRADUATE SCHOOL THAT THERE WAS A TON OF LITERATURE AND HISTORY ON THIS

EVEN BEFORE THEN WAS ENGAGING IN COMMUNITY ORGANIZING AND ACTIVISM BECAUSE AGAIN I THINK IT TAKES A LOT OF DIFFERENT SHAPES AND FORMS THIS PICTURE TO PROVIDE SOME INSIGHT IS THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN MARCH FOR EQUITY AT THE FIRST-EVER MOVING MOUNTAIN SUMMIT IN WASHINGTON, D C FIRST TIME I HAD EVER SEEN THIS MANY ASIAN AMERICANS COME TOGETHER TO TALK ABOUT EQUITY IT WAS A SPACE FOR OTHER SOCIAL-JUSTICE-MINDED FOLKS IN THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY

I SHARE THIS BECAUSE THIS IS THE PICTURE WE USUALLY SEE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT ACTIVISM, MARCHES, PROTESTS, PEOPLE CARRYING BANNERS AND SIGNS, AND THAT'S VERY, VERY LEGITIMATE BUT WE DON'T ALWAYS HAVE TO GET LOUD BY PROTESTING AND RAISING FUNDS, BUT WE CAN ALSO GET LOUD BY CRITICALLY THINKING AND ENGAGING IN DIFFERENT CONVERSATIONS, BY BUILDING COMMUNITY WITH ONE ANOTHER AND CONSIDERING WAYS COLLEGE STUDENTS SHOULD IMPACT THE WORLD I BELIEVE THAT UNDERSTANDING SYSTEMIC OPPRESSION AND THE VARIOUS TYPES OF ISMS, SEXISM, RACISM, ABLEISM ARE DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS TO HAVE BUT THEY HUMANIZE US UNDERSTANDING HOW WE'RE DEHUMANIZED WE CAN FIND OUR HUMANITY AGAIN AND I STARTED HAVING THESE CONVERSATIONS WITH MYSELF I SOON REALIZED THAT SOCIAL JUSTICE ACTUALLY MEANS BEING CLOSER TO YOUR COMMUNITY, NOT ABOVE YOUR COMMUNITY AS A PhD STUDENT MYSELF I HEAR ALL THESE THINGS ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO GO IN AND SAVE THE COMMUNITY AND ACADEMICS ARE GOING TO SAVE THE WORLD

I THINK THERE ARE A LOT OF ISSUES IN ACADEMIC SPACE WHERE WE THINK WE'RE ABOVE OUR COMMUNITIES WHEN OUR COMMUNITIES ARE AT THE FOREFRONT OF THE WORK THAT WE DO LEARNING SOCIAL JUSTICE, OPPRESSION, ET CETERA, SHOULD ENABLE US TO MAKE SPACE FOR OUR COMMUNITY, NOT MOVE US AWAY FROM OUR COMMUNITY IT'S ALSO REMINDED ME THAT SOME OF THE MOST POWERFUL CHANGE AGENTS ARE FOLKS DOING THE EVERYDAY WORK TO GET BY THESE FOLKS ARE THE ONES WHO REALLY GET RECOGNIZED AND DO THE MOST FOR A COMMUNITY PEOPLE WHO WORK IN THE SCHOOL SYSTEM, CUSTODIANS, []SEAM STRESSES, WAITERS, WAITERS, IMMIGRANT AND POOR FAMILIES TRYING TO MAKE ENDS MEET OFTEN SHOW US WHAT SOCIAL JUSTICE LOOKS LIKE BEFORE WE FIND THE LANGUAGE FOR IT

IF OUR MOVEMENTS AREN'T REACHING THESE FOLKS THEN OUR MOVEMENTS DON'T MATTER I THINK I HAVE TO WRAP UP SOON SOME CONCLUDING THOUGHTS, WE HAVE TO REMEMBER IT'S FOR THESE PEOPLE AND OUR FUTURE COMMUNITIES THAT WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO FIGHT FOR JUSTICE THERE ARE SO MANY FAMILIES, PEERS AND STRANGERS WE MAY NOT KNOW YET FEELING AS THOUGH THEY DON'T MATTER BECAUSE THEIR IDENTITIES ARE CONSTANTLY UNDER ASSAULT FROM IDENTIFYING AS QUEER, TRANS , UNDOCUMENTED, THIS WON'T STOP UNTIL WE STOP IT IT CAN BE AS OBVIOUS AS A RACIAL SLUR OR INSIDIOUS AS OUR OWN POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO STOP IT PERSONALLY AND SYSTEMATICALLY AND PROMOTE RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AND HEALING PRACTICES THAT EMBRACE EVERYONE AS I SHARED EARLIER I THINK ALL OF US NEED TO PRACTICE RADICAL LOVE WHEN WE LOVE OUR COMMUNITIES WE EXPECT OUR COMMUNITIES TO BE BETTER AND HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE TO BE BETTER I WANTED TO SHARE FINAL THINGS AS PEOPLE THINK ABOUT THEIR SOCIAL JUSTICE JOURNEY AND BUILDING COALITIONS UNDERSTANDING THAT STORYTELLING IS IMPORTANT, WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS IN THIS ROOM BECAUSE OF STORYTELLING

THERE IS A UNIVERSAL TRUTH TO STRUGGLE ALL OF US ARE IN STRUGGLES THOSE STRUGGLES MAY NOT BE SIMILAR, SOME OF THEM MAY BE SIMILAR, BUT I THINK THAT THE STRUGGLE CAN BIND US TOGETHER IN A MOVEMENT FOR JUSTICE THERE ARE A LOT OF LAYERS THAT CHANGE NEEDS TO OCCUR FOR LIBERATION TO BE POSSIBLE WE NEED PEOPLE TO BE MARCHING, WE NEED PEOPLE TO BE CREATING HASHTAGS

WE NEED PEOPLE TO ALSO BE FOLKS WILLING TO PROVIDE CHILD CARE FOR THOSE GOING OUT ON THE STREETS, PROVIDING FOOD, NURTURING PEOPLE CHOOSING TO PROTEST IN ALL FORMS, ALL WAYS IN ORDER FOR LIBERATION TO HAPPEN FINALLY, PROGRESS AND VICTORIES ARE POSSIBLE, AND THAT WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO KEEP TRACK AND KNOW THE HISTORY OF OUR WINS AS WELL I THINK WHEN SO MUCH IS GOING ON AND SO MUCH HURT IS HAPPENING IN THE WORLD IT CAN SEEM VERY OVERWHELMING, SOMETIMES IT SEEMS LIKE WE'RE GOING BACKWARDS BUT WE HAVE WINS AND OUR COMMUNITIES ARE RESILIENT AND WILL BE HEARD, AND OUR COMMUNITIES WILL BE SEEN AS WELL SO I DON'T THINK I HAVE A SLIDE ON THIS, BUT A DOCTOR WHO IS A REALLY GREAT HIGHER EDUCATION SCHOLAR OFTEN ENDS HER TALKS WITH THIS STATEMENT THAT SAYS DO WE CARE ABOUT JUSTICE OR DO WE CARE ABOUT JUST US? SO AS SOME FOLKS HAVE SHARED IN THE ROOM IT'S NOT ABOUT PEOPLE WHO LOOK LIKE YOU, NECESSARILY HAVE THE SAME STRUGGLES AS YOU, THAT WOULD BE ABOUT US THIS IS ABOUT JUSTICE

AS LONG AS ONE SINGLE COMMUNITY IS OPPRESSED, THAT OPPRESSES ALL OF US, AND THEREFORE OUR LIBERATION IS INTERTWINED SO MY TIME IS UP I WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU AND I ALSO WANTED TO OPEN IT UP FOR Q & A, RIGHT? COOL AWESOME

THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE (APPLAUSE) >> SO I JUST WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU SO MUCH ON BEHALF OF THE UNITY WEEK COMMITTEE AND ON BEHALF OF HIGHLINE COLLEGE CAN WE PLEASE GIVE ANOTHER ROUND OF APPLAUSE TO VANESSA NA YES (APPLAUSE) >> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR SHARING YOUR TRUTH WITH US AND ALSO SHARING THE TRUTH OF YOUR COMMUNITY AND ALSO HAVING US SHARE OUR NAMES AND OUR HISTORIES WITH EACH OTHER AS WELL

YES ALL RIGHT SO WITH THAT, WE CAN START THE Q & A SO WE — IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS YOU WOULD LIKE TO ASK IF YOU COULD COME UP TO THE MIC AND ASK THE QUESTIONS BECAUSE WE ARE DOING LIVE CAPTIONING YES

>> THANK YOU IF YOU DON'T HAVE QUESTIONS, THAT'S OKAY, TOO >> SO I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION BUT IN TERMS OF — SO I IDENTIFY AS FILIPINO, ACTUALLY I AM FILIPINO SO THERE'S ALWAYS THE TALK OF LIKE THE TOKEN ASIAN OF WHEN PEOPLE SAY ASIAN THEY ALWAYS THINK CHINESE, KOREAN, OR JAPANESE, AND WE ARE LEFT OUT, NOT CONSIDERED PART OF THAT POPULATION IT'S NOT — BECAUSE WE DON'T FACE THE SAME PROBLEMS, WE DON'T EVEN LOOK THE SAME

THAT ALSO IS — I THINK I'D LIKE YOU TO JUST EXPAND ON, LIKE, AFFIRMATIVE ACTION, THE HASHTAG, AND HOW THAT IS HELPING OR WHAT WE CAN DO TO, LIKE, HELP WITH THAT ASPECT OF THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE WE'RE ESSENTIALLY IN TERMS OF, LIKE, WHEN WE'RE FIGHTING FOR OUR RIGHTS AND SOCIAL JUSTICE WHEN YOU SAY ASIAN AMERICAN ACTIVISM PEOPLE JUST THINK THAT SIDE OF THE ASIAN AMERICAN DIASPORA >> WHAT WAS YOUR NAME AGAIN? >> JEREMY I THINK THAT QUESTION — THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION CAN GO ON FOR DAYS WITHOUT A SOLUTION WHAT YOU'RE BRINGING UP WAS MY FRUSTRATION WITH GETTING INVOLVED WITH ASIAN AMERICAN IN THE FIRST PLACE I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN DENVER, COLORADO, THERE WASN'T A LARGE POPULATION OF ASIAN AMERICANS THERE

FOR SOME REASON I FOUND ASIAN AMERICAN ACTIVISM IN THE MIDWEST THERE WAS A CONFERENCE A THAT CAME TO MY COMMUNITY, AND I GOT RECRUITED TO GO TO A CONFERENCE THAT'S WHEN I REALIZED THERE WERE OTHER ASIAN AMERICAN STUDENTS THAT CARED ABOUT SOCIAL JUSTICE AND ACTIVISM I THOUGHT THESE ARE MY PEOPLE BUT THEN BECAUSE I RECOGNIZE THAT I'M VERY EAST ASIAN-PASSING, VERY LIGHT-SKINNED I WOULD BE IN OTHER ROOMS WITH OTHER ASIAN AMERICAN STUDENT ACTIVISTS AND HEAR THEM SAY HORRIBLE THINGS ABOUT MY COMMUNITY BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T KNOW I WAS IN THE ROOM SO THEY WOULD TALK ABOUT CAMBODIAN AMERICANS IN A DEFICIT LENS LIKE OH CAMBODIAN AMERICANS DON'T CARE ABOUT COMES TO THIS CONFERENCE BECAUSE THEY'RE IN GANGS OR DRUGS OR NOT IN SCHOOL

I REALIZED THAT THE ASIAN AMERICAN MOVEMENT ALTHOUGH POWERFUL HAS ALSO LEFT A LOT OF US OUT AND I'VE MADE IT ONE OF MY PERSONAL COMMITMENTS TO BE IN THOSE EAST ASIAN AMERICAN CENTRIC SPACES TO TALK ABOUT SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICANS AND PACIFIC ISLANDERS THERE ARE ALSO LEFT OUT OF THE CONVERSATION FOR AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN PARTICULAR, I ALWAYS HAVE CHALLENGES WITH THIS BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE YES, AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IS IMPORTANCE TO THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY AND SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN ADDITION TO COMMUNITIES OF COLOR HOWEVER I THINK THAT THERE'S A LOT OF INJUSTICE DONE WHEN SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICANS ARE ONLY BROUGHT UP WHEN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IS HAPPENING LIKE THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY DOESN'T TALK ABOUT US UNLESS IT AFFECTS THE ENTIRE ASIAN AMERICAN AFFIRMATIVE ACTION BUT NOT THE DEPORTATION OF CAMBODIAN AMERICANS

I FEEL LIKE THAT'S A LARGER ISSUE SO BEFORE WE CAN COALITION-BUILD WITH OTHER COMMUNITIES OF COLOR OUR ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY HAS A LOT OF WORK TO DO INTERNALLY BECAUSE I THINK THAT THERE ARE CERTAIN GROUPS WITHIN THE ASIAN AMERICAN PACIFIC ISLANDER UMBRELLA THAT ARE ALREADY INVISIBLE EVEN TO EACH OTHER, AND IT'S A LOT OF WORK FOR ONE PERSON TO DO, AND NO ONE PERSON SHOULD BE DOING THAT WORK BUT GOING INTO THESE ASIAN AMERICAN SPACES THAT ARE SUPPOSED TO BE SOCIALLY JUST AND EVEN THOSE THAT AREN'T AND LETTING THEM KNOW THAT SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICANS, PACIFIC ISLANDERS, SOUTHEAST ASIANS ARE HERE AND LISTENING AND OUR STORIES ARE JUST AS IMPORTANT, TOO I MAKE IT REALLY IMPORTANT WHEN I'M IN SPACES BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO HEAR THOSE THINGS AGAIN, AND I DON'T WANT PEOPLE TO THINK THAT IS OKAY SO I HOPE THAT ANSWERED YOUR QUESTION I THINK WE HAVE A LOT OF INTERNAL WORK TO DO BEFORE WE CAN EVEN MAKE CHANGES HAPPEN WITH OTHER COMMUNITIES OF COLOR

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS >> THANK YOU FOR COMING ALL THIS WAY TO COME SPEAK TO US TODAY, VANESSA I'M JUST CURIOUS ON HOW YOU ALL, YOU AND YOUR SIBLINGS FOUND OUT YOU HAD A TATTOO IF YOU'RE COVERING THEM UP IF YOU COULD JUST TELL THAT STORY >> YES SO IT WAS A REALLY HOT DAY IN COLORADO, AND MY MOM, BEING LIKE A LOT OF IMMIGRANT MOMS WANTED TO SAVE MONEY BY NOT TURNING ON OUR AIR CONDITIONING, SO I HAD MY HAIR UP, AND MY SISTER HAD HER HAIR UP, AND WE BOTH WENT INTO THE KITCHEN AT THE SAME TIME, AND I SAW HER TATTOO FIRST IT WAS LIKE, WAIT, WHEN DID YOU GET THAT? SHE HAD HAD IT FOR A YEAR AT THIS POINT, AND I HAD HAD MINE FOR TWO YEARS AT THIS POINT BECAUSE MY HAIR IS ALWAYS DOWN

AND I SHOWED HER MINE, AND WHILE THAT CONVERSATION WAS HAPPENING MY MOM CAME DOWNSTAIRS SO SHE FOUND OUT BOTH OF US HAD TATTOOS AT THE SAME TIME AND MY MOM WAS LECTURING US ABOUT TATTOOS AND HER FEELINGS FOR TATTOOS, AND SHE DIDN'T CARE THAT MINE WAS IN CAMBODIAN OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, AND MY BROTHER HEARD THE COMMOTION, HE CAME DOWNSTAIRS, SAW OUR TATTOOS BECAUSE HE DIDN'T KNOW EACH AND SHOWED US HIS AND MY BROTHER'S YOUNGER THAN US SO MY MOM KIND OF GAVE UP AT THAT POINT SHE'S LIKE ALL THREE OF MY KIDS HAVEN'T LISTENED TO ME SO THERE'S NO REASON FOR ME TO BE A PART OF THIS CONVERSATION ANYMORE YEAH, ALL IN THE SAME SPOT

SO HE DOESN'T SO I DON'T KNOW HOW HE WAS ABLE TO HIDE HIS BECAUSE HE ALSO LIVED AT HOME FOR A REALLY LONG TIME YEAH

SO ALL OF US KEPT OUR TATTOOS HIDDEN FOR A YEAR-PLUS FROM HER YEAH >> HI, VANESSA, THANK YOU YOU MENTIONED EARLIER THAT YOU WERE A FEMINIST I WANTED TO KNOW HOW HAS BEING A FEMINIST SHAPED YOUR WORK TODAY

>> THIS IS SUCH A RELEVANT QUESTION BECAUSE I'M TAKING A FEMINIST THEORY CLASS RIGHT NOW AT INDIANA UNIVERSITY, AND THE CLASS IS REALLY INTERESTING BECAUSE IT'S ABOUT FEMINISM AND THE WAYS IT HAS EXCLUDED LIKE WOMEN OF COLOR, TOO SO IT'S TALKED ABOUT THE HISTORY OF FEMINISM AS BEING CREATED BY WHITE WOMAN AND WHAT THAT MEANS AND I HAD A LOT OF CONFLICTS WITH IDENTIFYING AS A FEMINIST INITIALLY BECAUSE OF THAT BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW ANY OTHER ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISTS OR WHO CALLED THEMSELVES ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISTS, AND THE FOLKS THAT HAD OUTWARDLY CALLED THEMSELVES FEMINISTS IN MY COMMUNITIES WERE ONES WHO DIDN'T PAY ATTENTION TO MY COMMUNITY SO HOW CAN I BE A FEMINIST IF I DON'T SEE THEM ENACTING THINGS I THINK FEMINISTS SHOULD ENACT BUT THEN AS I GOT TO COLLEGE AND FINALLY MET LIKE ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISTS FOR THE FIRST TIME AND ALSO THROUGH THE INTERNET THERE WAS LIKE A GROUP CALLED ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISTS UNITED WHICH DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE BUT THERE WAS LIKE 5,000 PEOPLE IN THAT GROUP, AND THEY JUST HAD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT WHAT FEMINISM MEANT TO THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY THAT'S HOW I STARTED TO EMBRACE MY IDENTITY THERE WAS ONE TIME WHERE AFTER I HAD DONE A TON OF READING ON, LIKE, GRACE LEE BOGGS AND AMAZING ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISTS THAT I TALKED TO MY MOM AND STARTED DROPPING ALL OF THESE ACADEMIC WORDS, DO YOU KNOW ABOUT INTERSECTIONALITY OR FEMINISM, OPPRESSION, PRIVILEGE? SHE GAVE ME A REALLY BLANK LOOK AND SHE ASKED ME, LIKE, DO YOU THINK YOU'RE SMARTER THAN ME NOW, NOW THAT YOU'VE GONE OFF TO COLLEGE? THAT'S WHEN IT HIT ME THAT EVEN THOUGH I WAS LEARNING ALL THIS NEW TERMINOLOGY, MY MOM HAD ALREADY GIVEN ME THE KNOWLEDGE OF FEMINISM BEFORE I KNEW THERE WAS AN ACADEMIC TERM FOR IT

I DO COME FROM A FAMILY OF MATRIARCHS MY GRANDMA IS THE ROOT OF EVERYTHING THAT WE DO MY MOM, I WAS RAISED BY A SINGLE MOTHER, SO FEMINISM WAS ALWAYS A PART OF MY HOUSEHOLD I JUST DIDN'T KNOW IT WAS FEMINISM AT THE TIME AND NOW THAT I RECOGNIZE THAT IT IS A MOVEMENT, AND IT IS A POLITICAL IDENTITY AND I'M CURRENTLY DOING A LOT TO FIGURE OUT WHAT ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISM IN PARTICULAR MEANS AND SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN FEMINISM, AND IT'S STILL SOMETHING I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT

SO EVEN THOUGH I IDENTIFY AS A FEMINIST THERE ARE A LOT OF NUANCES TO THAT BECAUSE I PERSONALLY THINK THAT I AM MORE OF A WOMANIST BUT I ALSO RECOGNIZE THE ANTI-BLACKNESS THAT CAN HAPPEN IF AN ASIAN AMERICAN IDENTIFIES AS A WOMANIST SO IT WAS CREATED OUT OF BLACK WOMAN TO BE A COUNTER NARRATIVE TO FEMINISTS TOO SO I'M STILL NEGOTIATING I THINK FEMINISM HAS A LOT OF HISTORY IT NEEDS TO DEAL WITH BUT I THINK THAT A LOT OF ASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN ALSO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO CREATE WHAT FEMINISM COULD MEAN, TOO, AND THE POSSIBILITIES IT BRINGS YEAH YEAH, THANK YOU

ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? IT'S OKAY IF THERE'S NOT >> I HAVE A QUESTION >> OH >> LET'S KEEP THIS ROLLING OKAY

I HAVE A QUESTION SO I WAS WONDERING IF YOU COULD SHARE SOME ADVICE THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE FOR FOLKS WHO — WHO GREW UP IN AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY WERE — WHERE THEY HAVE AN IDENTITY THAT WASN'T — THAT WAS UNDER ATTACK OR WASN'T APPRECIATED SO FOR EXAMPLE I GREW UP IN A COMMUNITY WHERE I WAS ALWAYS BLAMED FOR THE COLOR OF MY SKIN AND ALSO FOR SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS AND SO WHAT — HOW CAN WE FIND OUR OWN COUNTER NARRATIVES AND BEGIN THAT JOURNEY OF THAT SELF-LOVE FOR OUR OWN COMMUNITIES BUT THAT KNOWLEDGE TO EMBRACE OUR MOTHERLAND OR OUR IDENTITIES >> THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT STORY, BECAUSE I THINK THAT A LOT OF US PROBABLY HAVE SIMILAR EXPERIENCES

SO I THINK JUST GENERALLY BEING A SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN WOMAN GROWING UP IN DENVER, COLORADO, NOW IN INDIANA, THAT'S JUST MY ENTIRE EXPERIENCE MY EXISTENCE IS ALWAYS UNDER QUESTION AND I'M ALWAYS HAVING TO, LIKE, FIGHT AND CREATE SPACE FOR MYSELF, AND THAT CAN BECOME REALLY, REALLY EXHAUSTING IT'S HARD FOR ME TO GIVE ANY SOUND ADVICE TO THIS QUESTION BECAUSE I THINK EVERYONE HAS THEIR OWN PERSONAL, UNIQUE JOURNEY, AND IT HAPPENS AT DIFFERENT TIMES LIKE I DON'T THINK THERE'S EVER ONE PARTICULAR TIME IN YOUR LIFE THAT YOU NEED TO COME INTO YOUR OWN

I THINK IT'S AN ENTIRE LIFETIME'S WORTH OF WORK THAT PEOPLE NEED TO DO FOR SOME PEOPLE THEY END UP MOVING TO COMMUNITIES THAT LOOK MORE LIKE THEM FOR OTHER PEOPLE, THEY, LIKE, IMMERSE THEMSELVES LIKE I DID IN BOOKS AND LITERATURE AND MEDIA THAT LOOKED LIKE ME OR AT LEAST ON THE SURFACE LOOKED LIKE ME GOSH I — I THINK THAT'S WHY I REALLY WANTED TO INTEGRATE ONLINE ACTIVISM INTO THIS, TOO, BECAUSE WHEN I WAS FEELING ISOLATED I AT LEAST HAD AN ONLINE COMMUNITY

AND I KNOW THAT #ACTIVISM AND FACEBOOK AND ALL THESE THINGS HAVE A REALLY BAD REPUTATION BECAUSE IT'S LIKE ONE OF THOSE MILLENNIAL THINGS THAT PEOPLE DO BUT I THINK THAT THERE'S EVIDENCE AT LEAST IN MY OWN PERSONAL STORY THAT IT IS BECAUSE OF THOSE COMMUNITIES THAT I'VE BEEN ABLE TO COME INTO MY OWN AS A SOCIAL JUSTICE ADVOCATE AND AS A FEMINIST AND EMBRACING THE ASIAN AMERICAN IDENTITY AND EVEN MEETING OTHER SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICANS I THINK THAT IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THOSE, AND I THINK FOR THOSE IN THE ROOM WHO ARE HERE AT HIGHLINE, THERE ARE TONS OF RESOURCES AND PATHWAYS TO BEGIN CREATING THOSE OPPORTUNITIES I THINK WE'RE REALLY PRIVILEGED TO EVEN BE AT A COLLEGE CAMPUS AT AN INSTITUTION, HAVE ACCESS TO CERTAIN THINGS THAT MANY OTHER COMMUNITIES DON'T, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WHILE WE'RE FIGURING OUT OUR OWN JOURNEY TO RECOGNIZE THAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE ALSO HAVING THOSE STRUGGLES AND TO HELP THEM WITH THEIR JOURNEY AS WELL I THINK THAT IS CRITICAL FOR OUR OWN UNDERSTANDING IN HELPING OTHER PEOPLE TO GET THOSE RESOURCES AND THAT KNOWLEDGE TOO

SO YEAH, I THINK THAT WOULD BE MY ADVICE, THAT AS YOU'RE LEARNING, TO BRING OTHER PEOPLE ALONG WITH YOU AND WHY TO LEARN TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY, WHATEVER THAT LOOKS LIKE FOR YOU CHECKING TIME >> GREAT SO THAT CONCLUDES OUR EVENT TODAY CAN WE PLEASE GIVE VANESSA NA A — SOME HIGHLINE LOVE? YES

(APPLAUSE)

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